Azumanga Trek: A Stolen Generation?
by Hwikek
Summary: During a time limited to the generic future a destroyer from the Federation's vast wartime armada is sent adrift with a certain team of two, Takino and Kasuga. Despite the conflict between each other they are unaware of the danger of another.
1. An Exciting Beginning?

_At the dawn of the somethingth century the planet of Earth decided to unify into a strange confederation under the leadership of the United States of America which had suspiciously decided to move to…Australia? Anyways let's just say these people were a little different than we are now. Moving on the "Confederation" became a huge ass armada of starships that everyone else in the galaxy respects since those ships have some pretty huge guns on 'em which luckily don't shoot pansy lasers but rather the massive 1.5 meter anti-materiel round. This was of course after the near destruction of Earth by the ridiculously powerful insect like Insecta Insectians. Despite their ugliness it took almost three years to keep the Insecta fleet out of the galaxy, though this was simply because it took three years to create a ship capable of space combat in the year 1987…err I mean 2007 (facepalm). Well let's just say that we're talking about a time after the invasion of Korea and the first World War III..._

"Commander Takino, what are you writing?" Commander Takino, (USN) looked up to see one of the other officers, a miss Mizuhara, staring at her through her repulsively thick glasses.

"What do you think I'm writing?" The Commander whined, "It's the history of the 'Confederation.'"

"First of all your history is wrong…and secondly why do you call it the 'Confederation.'"

"Is it really that important? It's not like anyone's going to read this shit anyways."

"Actually all of us read your 'secrets' since you forget to protect them with a password," Lieutenant Commander Mizuhara blatantly admitted.

"What? That's supposed to be private! You nasty little bi…."

At this moment one of the other officers interrupted this _incredible_ conversation to announce that they were approximately lost. "Any ideas on what to do _Commander_?"

"Excuse me Commander Kasuga, what did you just say to me?"

"I'm not afraid of you, we're the same rank after all," the young woman said.

"Well you can just shut the f— up already!"

"Excuse me you two, I don't mean to interrupt your _love fest_, but I need to know why this ship has stopped in the middle of interstellar space."

"Well if it isn't miss Naval Warfare herself," Commander Takino sneered. "You don't seem to know everything after all."

The woman stared at her equal…in rank if not in strength. Her brown hair formed distinctive tips, almost like the points of daggers, which pointed towards whoever she was facing; being held up by a surprising amount of hair gel. "As if you would know anything about me. Besides I'm pretty sure I know why we stopped in the middle of interstellar space anyways."

"Oh yeah? And why is that?" Takino continued to give her a hostile glare, not even giving a damn about the menace in her eyes.

"Fine b— I'll tell you. That lieutenant lied to you. The real reason we've stopped is because someone disabled our engines."


	2. Of Exposition A Continued Start

"Interesting, it's true you can't find good help these days." Bowing her head in thought Kasuga pondered the idea for several seconds. "Damn it," she whispered, "I have to go." The O-5 promptly stood up, leaving the cramped bridge behind as she passed through the open doorway.

"I think we should leave too. By the way Takino, I'm not actually a part of Naval Warfare (NavWar). I belong to Naval _Special_ Warfare (NavSpecWar), and SOCOM."

"What the hell is SOCOM?" Takino stared at her counterpart now revealing herself to be a spook.

"Special Operations Command genius,"

The spook walked away, Takino remained confused and decided to follow her. All Navy ships use LED lights their low cost and energy needs being essential to extra-planetary warfare. Takino often complained about their slight bluish tinge, saying that they weren't as good as white incandescent bulbs. Takino followed the spook throughout the ship wondering where they were headed. A sign above her head read _Engineering_. It was then that Takino understood why they had come. Engineering is the part of the warship where the repair crews are located. Their main job is to maintain the fusion engines, essential to the survival of the crew. One of the engineers stood by the window overlooking a subcomponent of the main fusion chamber. The massive structure had to be perfectly aligned in order to keep it from destroying the entire warship. Beside the reinforced windows a small woman stood talking to Commander Kasuga. Her hair was dyed a light pink, against regulations, she had on a t-shirt, also against regulations, and her hair had two ponytails dangling beside her head, also against regulations. Commander Takino looked at this small defiant person who seemed oblivious to the lack of compliance her appearance had. _This is my kind of engineer_, Takino told herself, _probably gets away with it too_.

"So what you're telling me Miss Mihama is that you shut down the engines yourself." Whenever Kasuga said something it was a statement, never a question, she had a reputation for being a real hard ass.

"Yes Miss Osaka, I…."

"Never call me that."

"But…isn't that your nickname?"

"No one that is a regular member of the crew has the right to use that name. Understand."

"I I I um, okay, Commander Kasuga!"

"That's better."

_What a b—_, Takino thought to herself.

"Yes I did have the engines disabled Commander Kasuga because there are several issues with the superstructure of the engines. In fact I saw a small section of the engines fall off onto the deck."

"Why weren't these issues discovered _before_ we set off for a _nine month voyage!_" The O-5 yelled at the young scientist at the top of her lungs. "We could have all been killed when we left the atmosphere!"

"I I I'm not sure why this is happening. I mean I only came aboard a Navy vessel quite recently and I didn't see any records of metal fatigue in the travel logs."

_Shit_, Takino thought to herself. Metal fatigue in the engines could explain the problems with the superstructure, worse, it could mean that the engines were near failing. Unlike a car or even a tank, engine failure on one of these babies created a ball of fusion that reached temperatures of over 300,000 degrees. That kind of heat wasn't even found in suns, not even plasmas could survive it.

"Don't be so harsh with her, _Osaka_."

_The hell? How did Miss SOCOM know Kasuga's nickname, I didn't even know it till now!_

"What's the big deal Special K? She's not Navy like you or me, she's not even military."

"True, but I don't think FleetCom would place an inexperienced engineer on reactor duty."

_Damn it who the hell are these two? Both know each other, both are Commanders, and they seem to hate each others guts. I've heard of love triangles, but are there such things as hate triangles?_

"Do you expect the engines to be repaired soon?" The spook looked at the young engineer seeing the fear on her face.

"Honestly I don't think we can make all the repairs on board this ship. It's pretty obvious that we need to return for a refit. But it's equally obvious that these issues were caused by someone, at least it is to me."

"So can we limp back to port or not kid?"

"Right now no, but in three weeks yes."

Kasuga rolled her eyes. "Great, three more weeks till twelve more weeks till two years. Really, _really_ great."

"As long as I get to spend those two years apart from you two I think I'll be fine."

"I'm sure you will be Takino, hey maybe my SOCOM friends and I can pay you a little visit."

"F— you."

"That's just too bad, I'm sure you'd _love_ to meet them."

"_Commander Kasuga report to the bridge, bridge to Commander Kasuga, Takino you come up too_," Mizuhara's voice could be heard through the loud speaker. "_Actually Takino, don't come up okay?_"

"Damn it Yomi I outrank you, you're not the boss of me!"

"_Look, we just need you two to get your asses up here already!_"

"Let's go," Kasuga said looking at Tomo, her eyes hard.

"I doubt it's too serious anyways."

"We'll find out when we get there."

"Who said you could tag along Miss SOCOM?" Takino sneered at her, showing a small amount of jealousy at the size of the spook's breasts.

"Just try to keep up," the spook took off down the hallway, running faster than anyone Tomo had ever seen.

When Takino and Kasuga reached the bridge "Miss SOCOM" was already standing beside Lt. Commander Mizuhara.

"Have you tried signaling yet?"

"No, so far we're hoping we can remain dark."

"Yeah right. This ship is bright silver, how stealthy can it be?"

"I think you have a point there."

"What's the deal Yomi?" Tomo turned to her only friend, but she _still_ thought her glasses were pretty freakin' ugly.

"Take a look at this screen."

Tomo turned her head towards the direction of the screen. There were several sections to the screen, each one displaying a different image. While most of the screen's sections cycled through multiple cameras one of the sections stayed on one camera's field of vision.

"Do you mind cutting these other feeds?" Tomo asked.

The image on the single section blew up to fill the entire screen.

"Dear God," Tomo whispered.

The screen displayed a field of black dotted with stars, as well as a small golden yellow disc. The disc appeared on the center of the screen, on its sides small rectangular windows gave a view inside. Five small black shapes could be seen, their large white eyes staring at Tomo's destroyer the _Hercules_. The image on the screen began to grow larger and larger. After a few seconds only the windows and faces were visible.

"Lt., stop zooming in so much," Kasuga complained.

"I'm not zooming in," Yomi said. "That thing is coming closer."

The weapons officer, a small woman who many were convinced was a lesbian came over. "Based on the object's current trajectory and the fact that our engines are disabled, I'm afraid that we will collide in the next sixty seconds."

"Um, say again please?"

"I said that thing is headed straight for us. In other words we're going to crash!"


	3. A Nice Peachy Girl Or A Real Jerk?

Sergeant Smith of the United States Marine Corps had been loitering onboard the _Hercules_ for the past half hour. Suddenly sirens went off, the noise was deafening. _Bang!_ The sound of two huge metal objects colliding, Smith was thrown from where he was standing, bounced against the wall, finally coming to rest on the floor. _I always knew those squids would be the death of me_, Smith thought in the back of his mind. Smith got himself off of the floor. He felt pain on his sides, in his right foot, in his left leg. _The goddamn Navy can't even steer us straight_. Reaching into his right hand pocket Smith retrieved a small plastic shape. It was orange and rectangular, a white wheel sat beneath a small screen. _At least my iPod is alright. These damn Picos cost about $200 a pop_. Smith saw someone coming down the hallway from the direction of the bridge. When she was closer to him, Smith saw the three gold stripes and star of a Commander, United States Navy.

_Shit_, "officer on deck!" Smith saluted her, standing with his back rigid and his chin up, just like in basic. She looked strangely familiar to Smith somehow, this couldn't have been the first time he'd met her.

"At ease," giving a clumsy salute she walked off. A small silver light reflected off her collar from the LEDs over head.

_What the hell is that on her collar, a fish maybe?_ The small silver shape seemed to be out of place on her black dress uniform. It had a pointed head, a fin on the bottom as well as one on top. _But what's that little bit at the end. Oh…shit._ The silver shape ended with a small "V" shaped tail. The decoration on her collar was a shark. _That means she belongs to Fourth Fleet's Special Maritime Operatives Sea Air Land Capable. She's a f—ing commando!_ The SEALs (Sea Air Land) were the Navy's most elite soldiers. Unlike other members of the Navy these people really got their hands dirty. Whether it was assassinating rebel leaders, spying on unfriendly alien races, or taking on a platoon with only a team of six; SEALs were people that you didn't want angry with you…unless you had a death wish.

_But where do I know her from? She's not from the normal officer pool, I've seen Commander Takino and Commander Kasuga often enough to know that. Wait..._ Smith looked at his iPod Pico. Using the click wheel he looked throughout his list of songs. _…Down, Exodus, Fabulous, Fire and Rain…wait that last one. Which one, oh yeah, Fabulous!_ Looking at the picture of the album Smith saw the woman who had just walked by. _Four States of Fabulous, by Kagura: Peach Girl. _Smith thought this was fairly strange, not just the fact that the artist had a colon in her name. _Why would someone who creates songs be a SEAL? I mean this album just came out four months ago. Come to think of it why did I buy the album and _then_ put that onto my iPod? I could've just downloaded the song for 99 cents! I mean the album only has four songs on it anyways…well, really just the same song twice and two different music videos of it._ Smith had to give whoever came up with the cover art credit. It did show that girl with her hands lifting up her ample sized breasts. _Too bad she was wearing a top_, Smith thought to himself.

_"Don't worry about the ship, I'll handle it." _That thought wouldn't leave Kagura's head. She passed some jarhead in the halls, returning his crisp salute with a real half assed one. Above her a sign read _Flight Deck_, this was where she needed to go. The flight deck wasn't usually busy on a destroyer, today was no exception. The flight engineers gave her a salute, she didn't return it.

"Yo, I need a ship and a pilot. _Now_." Her tone wasn't particularly loud, it didn't have to be.

"Yes ma'am, right away ma'am." The flight commander called one his pilots over.

"Does he know how to fly?"

"I sure hope so, for the plane's sake." There was a clear sense of hostility in his voice. He certainly wasn't one of her fans.

"Sir, you know I can pilot a craft."

"The last time you piloted something you ended up in the hospital for six months. Now go get Alvarez, now _he_ knows how to fly one of these goddamn birds."

Mumbling the pilot set off, before running into one of the gunships.

"Don't you damage that Kestrel Samson!" the flight commander yelled.

Inwardly Kagura rolled her eyes. _These people and their damn attachment to aircraft…it helps explain why they can't fight on the ground._ "Where do the troopers prep up on this flight deck?"

"That would be over there by the showers, but why? What does it matter to you?"

"That's none of your concern." Kagura set off towards the showers, watching Samson trip over a barrel. _Absolutely worthless, reminds me of Tom... I still wish that bastard was dead._

"Officer on deck!" A marine stood by the showers, quickly rising to greet Kagura.

"At ease, where do you marines keep your deep space gear?"

"Over here ma'am." The young man led her to a locker room. Inside several black suits stood against the wall. All manner of weapons stood on racks nearby, for this mission Kagura would probably need none of them.

"You are dismissed marine," Kagura watched as the man walked away, saluting once again.

"Time for me to get to work."

Takino and Kasuga stood on the bridge looking at two different screens. One of these screens showed the alien craft that they had encountered. The other showed the flight deck.

"Okay," said Tomo. "There's 'Miss SOCOM' now talking to the officer in charge of the flight deck. Who's that person who just ran into one of the Kestrels?"

"No idea, some Air Force wing wiper," O-4 Mizuhara said.

"Alright, now 'Miss SOCOM' is headed towards the showers to suit up."

"Tomo, why do you keep calling the Commander 'Miss SOCOM'?"

"Jesus Yomi! No one else gives a f—!"

"Look she's coming out now," Kasuga pointed at the screen.

"How do you know that's her?" Tomo replied.

"How do you think, alright she's getting into one of the Kestrels now," Osaka continued to point out the obvious.

"Why is she going out unarmed?"

"Well Takino, I'd say it's because in a zero-gee environment like space extra weight can be fatal."

"How do you know that Kasuga?" Yomi and Tomo said in unison.

"That hardly matters as of right now. Besides, since this has now become a combat operation I am in charge of the ship."

"What?" Tomo screeched. "How is this a combat operation?"

"Mizuhara if you agree with me I can make you a Commander as soon as we get back to port." Kasuga didn't have to wait long for an answer.

"You goddamn traitor Yomi! I'll spit on your grave!"

"Yeah!" yelled the weapons officer.

"Hey what's your name again?" Tomo inquired.

"Well my name is Kaorin…."

"Is it true that you're a lesbian?"

"Uh, no, no it's not Commander Takino."

"Jeez I was just curious," Tomo whined; seriously that's all she ever does on any given day.

"But but I was respectful in my tone and everything."

"I bet you're still in the closet. Hey Yomi!" Mizuhara looked in the Commander's direction. "Ten bucks says this girl will bunk with another girl before we get back to port."

"To be perfectly honest Commander, I'm not really a lesbian. I guess you could say I don't have any preference really, nor desires for that matter."

"Kaorin you are such a liar!" one of the fellow bridge officers yelled. "After that one night back at port you told me that you couldn't keep away from guys even if you wanted to!"

"See, I knew she was a lesbian!"

"But Tomo," Yomi told her friend, "the officer who just spoke is a man, not a transvestite."

"How can you tell?" The "wildcat" screamed.

"I have my ways."

"Argh! I can't guess well at all! All three of my predictions were wrong!"

"TAKINO SHUT THE F— UP!" Kasuga looked different somehow; it was almost as if being in command made her stronger. "Get to work, unless you want to help her with that alien spaceship."

"Too late," said Kaorin, "she just left the ship."

Kagura went over the plan one more time in her head. _My first objective is to destroy the communication devices on the outside of the alien ship to prevent it from calling for help. Secondly I'll attach a short range transmitter that will allow us to communicate with the ship. Of course the transmitter will probably be incompatible with the alien craft, but it's worth a shot if those _other_ officers don't have to give it a try and I'm the one risking my neck._ She knew the feeling well; this wasn't the first time it had happened.

The pilot's voice came onto the loudspeaker. "We're coming up on the ship now, not very big is it?"

"No it's not, but a bee can kill a man just as easily as an elephant." Kagura liked this pilot, they knew each other well.

"Yeah and die trying if it's a honeybee."

"Let's try not to find out."

"I like the sound of that Special K."

"Where are they?"

"Isn't it obvious Takino, or should I say Tomo, the ship is painted black so it _won't_ be visible." Kasuga told her idiotic coworker. "Too bad Fleet Command couldn't think of doing that with the warships that are worth a couple billion in taxpayer's money but there's a suit for ya.*"

* (Suits is a term used to designate high ranking officers, such as generals and admirals.)

"Okay," Kaorin said, "I see a small black object moving towards the alien ship. Judging from the size I'd have to say it's the SOCOM Commander." The next thirty minutes were an agonizing wait. It seemed as if "Miss SOCOM" was trying to see how long it could take for her to move around the yellow top of the ship before reaching the orange bottom. The scariest parts were when the Commander passed by the windows. Everyone had held their breaths in while she blocked out the little yellow rectangles before moving to the top again and placing the transmitter. Finally the little shape rose off of the yellow saucer before disappearing into the darkness of space once more.

"I can't believe 'Miss SOCOM' could really do that," Tomo said, still slightly incredulous to what she had just seen happen before her very own eyes.

"That's 'cause she's a Navy SEAL," Kasuga stated. "Her nickname is Special K, but most of us just call her Kagura."

"Wait a minute, Kagura? As in the super famous singer Kagura?" Kaorin asked, her eyes wide open in shock.

"Yep," said Osaka.

"Oh my god," Tomo and Kaorin said, one in complete disgust, the other in what could only be described as deep admiration. "But I have all her songs on my iPod!"

"Really?" said Yomi, "I have all of her songs on my iPod too!"

"Ooh, do you think she might sign one of my albums?"

"I doubt it Kaorin, at least not before she signs one of mine!" Yomi yelled, a strange determination in her voice.

"CAN WE PLEASE FOCUS!" Kasuga yelled, "we have an alien warship that's rammed into our side, I think that's just a _little more important than having a pop star onboard the ship!_"

"I see you guys missed me up here," Kagura said.

"Wow Kagura! I can't believe you made it up here so fast!" Kaorin seemed to turn into a total fangirl at the moment Kagura came onto the bridge.

"That's one of the first things you learn as a Navy SEAL, speed and endurance. As well as, how to fire an HK 416SV underwater into a six inch target, fifty meters away on full auto."

"Will you sign my album of Four States of Fabulous please?" Yomi asked.

"Wow, people onboard this ship have that? I must say I'm pretty surprised…don't worry I'll sign it."

"Mine too," said Kaorin.

While Kagura was signing the albums of multiple crew members, Tomo decided to ask Osaka a little more about "Miss SOCOM".


	4. Who Is Miss SOCOM We Will Learn Later

"So…Osaka right?" Takino asked.

"Sure," Commander Kasuga answered.

"How do you know Kagura anyways, Osaka?"

"Well Tomo," Osaka began, "we've known each other ever since I moved to Tokyo…."

It was at that moment that Tomo interrupted Osaka. "I used to live in Tokyo too. That's where I met Yomi."

"Look Tomo," Osaka said, "do you want me to tell you about Kagura or not?"

"Well not really, but I guess I have no choice," Tomo answered.

"Why in the heck would you say that?"

"It sounded better in my head before it came out of my mouth," Tomo replied.

"Let's just say that I've known her awhile and leave it at that," Osaka said.

"No, that doesn't help me at all," Tomo retorted.

Osaka sighed, overdramatically before continuing. "Anyways Kagura and I have known each other ever since I moved to Tokyo. Basically she's obsessed with beating everyone that challenges her, unlike most people who try that she actually has talent. When we were both conscripted into the Navy that natural ability and competitive spirit forced her to become a Navy SEAL."

"And the reason that she happens to be The Queen of Pop?" Tomo asked.

"Honestly I have no idea," Osaka responded.

At that moment Kagura came over. Strangely enough she was wearing an orange tank top…and a pair of what appeared to be waders.

"Say Tomo," said Osaka.

"Hmm?"

"When you said that all three of your guesses were wrong what did that mean?" Kasuga asked.

"Well," Tomo replied, "I was pretty sure Kaorin was a lesbian, that guess was wrong. I was pretty sure the communications officer was a transvestite, also wrong. Finally I could have sworn that Yomi was into chicks and not dudes. I don't really believe her statement that she slept with the communications officer either, she strikes me as too much of a germaphobe to have sex with someone."

"Okay," said Osaka, "_way_ too much information about Yomi there."

"I know right?"

"Hey," said Kagura, "shouldn't we try to communicate with that alien ship, _instead_ of debating whether or not the Lt. Commander is a homosexual?"

"What alien ship?" Tomo asked.

"You blockhead!" yelled Kagura. "The one that crashed against this destroyer less than an hour ago!"

"Hey Osaka," said Tomo, "what does blockhead mean? I've only heard of it before in newspaper comics."

"That's not important!" yelled Kagura. "We need to get those aliens to surrender to us sometime today."

"I agree Kagura," replied Osaka, "why don't we have you lead the diplomatic team."

"I think Takino would be better suited to that."

"Better add Mizuhara in too," added Osaka.

"Sounds good enough to me," Kagura replied.

"What?" said Yomi, "but I'm the _least_ annoying of this ship's officers!"

"True," said Kagura, "but you're also one of the smartest. This means you'll be one of the best suited to encountering unidentified life forms."

Yomi grumbled under her breath but then remembered the promise of a promotion when they got back to port.

"What should I do Kagura?" Kaorin asked.

"You'll train the ship's main guns on that craft," Osaka responded. "If it so much as spits in our direction I want you to blow it to hell."

"Actually I disabled its weapons along with the communication devices. If they try anything, well, they'll become a _lovely_ ball of plasma."

"Well done Kagura, well done," Osaka creepily responded.

"Of course we'll just try talking to them with the communicator first."

"Good idea."

Twelve minutes later it was clear that they couldn't contact the ship. Someone would have to go inside. Unfortunately that someone was Tomo…and Yomi.


	5. Who Are The Aliens?

Tomo and Yomi stood together in the cargo bay of a large transport craft. They were waiting for the other team members to join them on the trip.

Yomi turned to Takino. "Hey Tomo."

"Yeah Yomi?"

"Before we go aboard the alien space ship, I need to ask you something."

"Okay."

"Why do you think I'm a lesbian and a germaphobe?"

"We're about to risk our lives through an encounter with an unknown alien race, and that's the only thing you want to ask me?"

"Don't flatter yourself, you're not that interesting."

At that moment the cargo bay door opened revealing the other ULE (Unidentified Life form Encounter) team members. Two of them were members of the Navy's Security Team Earth Class (STEC), one of them was a marine, and the final member was Kagura.

"I thought you weren't coming," Tomo said.

"If these creatures are hostile, you two are going to need all the help you can get," Kagura responded. "That's why I brought these guys with me. All of them have combat experience; not to mention numerous necessary skills. I doubt you two can take on aliens by yourselves."

"I can take on anything," Tomo bragged.

"Whatever, just don't die on me alright?" Kagura said.

"We'll both try our best," Tomo assured her.

_Man_, thought Smith. _I can't believe I volunteered for this. Maybe the aliens will be super hot, but I doubt it._

"Hey jarhead," said the black haired STECie, "have you ever been in a combat zone?"

"Yeah, and I can beat any squid, whether they have an inflated ego or not."

"You'd better hope you never have to see me in action. I'd _hate_ to think of how sad it would be for a 'real man' like yourself to lose to a girl."

"Whatever," Smith replied, _I think I hate her already_.

"_Are all of you ready to go?_" Alvarez's voice filled the cargo bay.

"Yes," everyone said in unison.

"_Okay, sit down and don't get up. Broken bones aren't exactly my specialty_," Alvarez commented.

"So Kagura," said Tomo, "where are the weapons?"

"First of all _we_, as in the security team, will get weapons. You two will not have weapons, unless of course everything goes south. If that happens, and I pray to god it does not, I may find myself forced to give you two firearms." It was quite clear that Kagura _did not_ trust Tomo, or Yomi with lethal force.

"Hey Yomi," said Tomo. "Why did you say you were the _least_ annoying of the ships officers?"

"Well I wasn't counting Commander Kasuga or Kagura when I said that."

"What about the rest of the ship's officers?" Tomo added.

"I included them."

"Even the one you slept with?" Tomo continued to ask her friend these _very_ personal questions.

"Especially him!" Yomi yelled.

"Weird, I mean you lost your virginity to him right?" Tomo asked.

"Look," said Kagura, "let's just focus on the mission, _okay_?"

"_Okay everyone, we are at what appears to be an airlock. Everyone needs to suit up and prepare for contact._"

"You ready to go Yukari?" the black haired STECie asked.

"Sure am Nyamo," the brown haired STECie responded.

"Please, stop calling me that Yukari."

"Never! Victory and booze always!" the crazy b— yelled.

_I never should have brought those two_, Kagura thought to herself. _They'll get us killed just as easily as Takino will._

The team put on their Deep Space Gear HazMat Capable. The two STECies had SCAR HSVs slung over their backs. Smith carried a standard TAR 51, Kagura carried her favorite; an HK 45SV with a laser sight and a high capacity magazine.

"_The airlocks will join in about twenty seconds, after that I'll wait here for you guys to return_," Alvarez stated.

"Understood," said Kagura, "now I want one thing to be absolutely clear. As long as we are on that ship, _I_ am in charge. No action will be taken without you asking me about it first. Understand?"

"Yes ma'am," said everyone, Kagura was kind of scary after all.

"_Alright airlocks have joined, alien atmosphere is like that of Earth. I guess that means the HazMat suits were overkill._" Alvarez's joke was _not_ well received.

"Let's just keep our armor on for now, we can take it off when we get back." Everyone agreed with Kagura since they were still afraid of her.

Smith walked in front of the rest of the group. This made him the "point man" of the ULE team. _I hope that this won't be like the Alien movies_, Smith thought,_ that shit still gives me nightmares_. When it was clear that the aliens weren't going to jump out and attack him Smith calmed down a little, thinking that an alien would never rear its ugly face. It was then that Smith saw one of the aliens for the first time.

_You have got to be kidding me_, Smith thought to himself. The alien was short, it was green, it had huge eyes, and a funny hat. _The aliens look just like a cartoon version of frogs?_ Smith was naturally confused since that was completely unexpected.

"Intruder!" screamed the alien. "Prepare for your death at the hands of Sergeant Keroro!"

_What the f—?_ Smith thought to himself.

"Please don't hurt me!" the creature yelled. "Don't you know that I pee myself in self defense?"

Smith just stared at the small, pathetic, large eyed creature. Eventually the other group members saw the alien. Kagura was the first to respond.

"You there!" she yelled. "Who is in charge of this ship?"

"Th-that would be me!" The formerly sniveling wench leaped to his feet, "I Sergeant Keroro leader of the ARMPIT Platoon am in charge of this vessel."

No one knew quite how they should respond to the alien. His unexplainable mood swing denying even the hope of conversation.

"Hey," Keroro said, "you guys can speak Keronian?"

"I guess so," Smith replied, "we were hoping to negotiate the terms of your surrender."

"Why should I surrender? We're equally matched!"

"You have six people aboard this ship?" asked Tomo.

"What are people?" asked the Keronian.

"I mean are there six of you?"

"No, just five."

"So, then how can we be equally matched?" asked Yomi.

"Well, I'm pretty sure that the five of us can take on the six of you. I mean all of us have weapons, but our weapons are Keronian; and therefore far superior to any alien devices you have!"

"Shut up already," Tomo said, "you stupid frog."

"I am not a stupid frog! I am _amazing_!" The Keronian's eyes began to water, soon tears flowed and an annoying crying noise escaped the alien frog.

"Sergeant what's the matter?"

The group noticed a small black creature appear. It had on another funny hat, it had some symbol on its chest, and it had a tail. Of all the aliens (of which they had only seen two), this was the most bizarre (which is weird since Sgt. Keroro had a yellow star on his chest).

"Tamama!" Keroro yelled, "where is Giroro?"

"Umm, in the bathroom I think," the black frog alien responded.

"No I'm right here."

Giroro was a red frog, his eyes were strange (like most frog aliens'), he had a strange hat with a skull on it, and finally he carried a large weapon on his back. None of the ULE team members knew what to do next.

"Intruders! I'll clean the floor with your blood!" screamed Giroro.

"Corporal Giroro, wait!"

Giroro turned to the source of the noise, Sgt. Keroro.

"What is it?" Giroro asked.

"These kind aliens have agreed not to destroy us, but only if we surrender to them now!" the Sergeant told his subordinate. "Don't you see Giroro? If they can travel through space in invisible spaceships we don't have a chance of defeating them!"

"We don't _have_ invisible spaceships," said Tomo.

"But, then why didn't we see your interstellar craft?" the Sergeant said stunned.

"Don't you guys have cameras outside this ship?"

"NO!" yelled Keroro, "we only trust our eyes! Besides I don't know how to install them."

"Idiot!" yelled Giroro, "why didn't you ask someone else to set them up?"

"It hardly matters," the Sergeant answered.

It was not too long after this statement that Commander Kasuga decided to come aboard the alien vessel. This was based on the decision that the aliens were not a serious threat to the safety of the crew.

"Hey Osaka," Kagura said. "What brings you here?" By this time everyone had taken off their helmets and only smith remained in his battle armor.

"It doesn't matter why I'm here," Osaka responded. "How are we progressing with these…Keronians?"

"We're doing pretty well so far, they don't seem to have a really good understanding of how to run a ship. This only makes sense though since they're a part of their species' army."

"Fine," said Osaka.

Kagura watched her old friend walk towards the other members of the team, engaged in a friendly game of soccer with the Keronians. Osaka was completely different now. The last time Kagura had seen her was when they had both completed their SEAL training, almost four years ago.

Kagura had known Osaka ever since they were kids. She had first met her friend after Osaka had moved from the town she was born in, Osaka, Japan. That was how the poor girl had earned her nickname. Back when they were children Osaka had always been spacey, she often came up with non sequiturs that no one understood. When they were both conscripted into the Navy Osaka had not changed yet. For some reason Kagura and Osaka had both been selected for further training to become Navy SEALs. Kagura would never understand why Osaka had been selected for the SEALs, in the past she couldn't swim, had no upper body strength, and no stamina. The training killed her twice, but somehow she was resuscitated; not only that she wasn't discharged from the SEAL's brutal training methods. But even death hadn't changed Osaka, except for the fact that she claimed it wasn't too exciting; no, what had changed Osaka was the time she had spent in "the pit".

Surprised by her lack of physical and mental toughness, the SEAL instructors placed her into "the pit" also known by such names as: "I wish I were dead", "Where's my mommy?", and "I already know what hell is like, I don't think death is so bad anymore". Unfortunately Osaka had gone to "the pit" twice. Needless to say afterwards, she just wasn't the same. Kagura missed the happy, spacey Osaka, and she had a feeling that she'd never see her again.


	6. Warning Moisture Can Cause Death

Watching the ULE team and the Keronians totally suck at the glorious game of football or soccer (this is of course dependent on what name you call the sport where two teams kick around a black and white ball). Kagura was certain that a peaceful solution was possible. She knew that one could be reached quite easily, and that no one wanted otherwise.

**Twenty minutes later…**

Commander Kasuga had decided that it was safe to attach the alien vessel to one of the airlocks on the _Hercules_. Kaorin looked at the officers assembled on the bridge. Todd, the communications officer, was busy talking with Larry, the navigator. Kaorin still couldn't believe it, _I met Kagura: Peach Girl! This is even better than the time I kissed Miss Sakaki!_ One night Kaorin had been walking home to her apartment, the air had been cool and the smell of backpack lint filled the air. Ahead Kaorin noticed a large stumbling shape in the darkness. This shape was soon revealed to be a drunken Miss Sakaki, her Asian heritage doing her no good when it came to alcohol. As soon as she saw Kaorin, Sakaki had rushed up to her and gave her the tongue; before she recoiled back in pain.

"Stupid kangaroo," Sakaki mumbled, "what the hell is your problem?" The drunken animal "lover" walked away, disgusted and with blood on her lips.

"Oops," Kaorin thought aloud. _Oh crap I just thought aloud again, this is the twelfth time today!_ Kaorin wasn't sure why she had bit Sakaki, maybe she was nervous, maybe she was kinky, she just didn't know. All she knew for certain was that that was a pretty weird, yet wonderful, drunken encounter.

"Yo Kaorin," Larry the African American navigator interrupted, "why is your face red?"

"My face _is not RED!_" yelled Kaorin.

"The f— is your problem anyways," asked Todd.

"I don't have problems, and neither does anyone—"

"_Kagura to bridge, Kagura to bridge_," Kagura could be heard over the radio.

"Yes Kagura, what is it?" Kaorin asked.

"_We've got problems, the Keronians have turned hostile! We're gonna need support!_," Kagura sounded stressed.

"Oh my god," said Todd. "Do you think they'll be alright?"

"I think they'll be better if we can get them some backup," answered Larry.

**Fifteen minutes prior…**

After scoring three consecutive goals on her own, Kagura grew rather bored with the game of soccer. Going towards the Keronian version of a locker room for a shower Kagura encountered a strange sign. It had no words on it, but showed what appeared to be a showering Keronian and an exclamation point. Ignoring it Kagura went into the shower room.

"Tamama! Kick the ball over here!" yelled Keroro.

"No! Yomi, don't let these toads win!"

"Okay Tomo!" Mizuhara responded. Yomi somehow blocked the pass to Keroro. "Nyamo, take the ball!"

"Why does everyone keep calling me that?" asked Minamo before Yomi passed the ball to her. Minamo headed down the field towards the ARMPIT Platoon's goal, before being blocked by Giroro.

"Pathetic human," said Giroro, "it would be unwise to underestimate me!"

"But you couldn't keep up with Kagura," Tomo pointed out, "why should we listen?"

"Th—that was cold!" Giroro yelled.

Keroro watched as Giroro brought the ball further up the field. The air felt moist against his froggy skin. As he watched the Corporal kick the ball towards a certain goalie named "Jarhead" Keroro felt a change come over him. He felt an unstoppable amount of power surging through his body. His skin became moist (more so), and he realized that the humans couldn't stand up to him in a fight. Keroro looked around at his subordinates. Private Second Class Tamama's skin was shinier, Lance Corporal Dororo's movements were faster, Corporal Giroro's gaze was harsher, and Sergeant Major Kururu looked the same.

It was then that Kagura emerged from the shower.

"Yo Kagura!" said Tomo. "Where have you been?"

"I just took a shower, the shower rooms on this vessel are really steamy. There was so much moisture in the air that all of the towels were absolutely soaked."

"Hey," said Smith, "those aliens look different."

"Humans!" yelled Keroro, "we will bathe ourselves in your blood!"

"Not this again," Smith whined, "that's what he said the first time I saw him. After that he assumed the fetal position and threatened to urinate."

This time though it was quite clear that Sgt. Keroro was not afraid of Smith, or Nyamo, or even Kagura. His eyes glowed bright yellow, so did the rest of his team's. Suddenly they were quite menacing in appearance, their small height quickly forgotten.

"Prepare…_to die!_"

Keroro leaped into the air, a strange energy bolt escaped his hands. The wicked force coursed through the air, hitting Yukari in the chest.

"Yukari!" screamed Minamo watching as her "friend" fell to the ground.

"Holy shit! Let's get out of here!" Smith yelled.

The ULE team ran towards the airlock to get back to the ship.

"Negative!" Kagura yelled at Nyamo, "lay down suppressing fire!"

"Yes ma'am!" Nyamo reached for the SCAR HSV slung over her back. She aimed the rifle in the general direction of the Keronians before firing ten .30 rounds.

"No!" yelled Keroro, "Dororo's been hit!"

"I'll make them pay!" yelled Giroro, "this is for Dororo!" The Corporal aimed his large anti-tank missile launcher at the ULE team, thankfully he missed. The ULE team quickly reached the airlock.

"Close the airlock!" yelled Kagura.

The thick blast doors closed, separating them from the demon frogs. It was at that point that Nyamo started to cry.

"Hey squid," said Smith, "you think you can help me kill the rest of those bastards?"

_This guy reminds me of Tom too_, Kagura thought to herself. Why her old boyfriend came to mind wasn't quite clear to her. Back when Kagura had been conscripted into the Navy she had fallen in love with a Marine recruit named Tom. Eventually Tom left Kagura heartbroken, pregnant, and with a formerly incurable strain of syphilis. She hadn't seen him since.

"Do you think we'll be safe?" asked Tomo.

"Let's hope so," said Osaka, "because those aliens are a lot more dangerous than we thought they were.

"Aw crap!" said Tamama. "Those stupid aliens sealed the airlock, and I wanted to use their blood for smoothies!"

"Patience, private, patience."

"Sgt. what do you mean?" the three remaining platoon members asked.

"We have a plan for this, don't we Kururu?"

"Oh right, I almost forgot."

"What plan?" asked a curious Tamama.

"As I said before private, _patience_."

**Two days later…**

"We are gathered here today, to mourn the loss of Chief Petty Officer Tanazaki, Yukari, of the United States Navy. This tragedy will remind us all of the dangers we must face, to preserve humanity…."

"Just a few more preparations left Sgt." said Giroro, "then we'll be able to destroy every last human aboard that ship."

"Heh heh heh. Excellent," said Keroro, "I've never felt stronger, those poor meat monkeys won't even stand a chance…."

"…That is why we will not stand aside as these murderous creatures plan to attack us! We will not fall to these fiendish reptiles. Every member of the military will be expected to lead in the assault against them. But don't worry there's only four enemies we have to face…."

"They're almost fully charged Sgt. Keroro," the evil Kururu said. "How many shall we deploy?"

"The humans may not be the strongest aliens we've ever faced, but they are certainly not weaklings. However I think one wave will suffice don't you….?"

"…In less than two hours I want all of you to be ready to fight these bastards is that understood?"

"Yes ma'am!" the entire assembled audience yelled. There were over five hundred warfighters standing in front of Kasuga. All of them were ready to fight, all of them were ready to die. Kasuga was fairly certain however that this would be a short fight, they only had four enemies to kill after all….

"Time for you to die space monkeys," Keroro said to himself. "Tamama, how ready is the first wave?"

"At one hundred percent, sir!" the private replied.

"Excellent, Kururu?" said the Sergeant. "Will you lead them into battle?"

"It would be my pleasure Sergeant…but who will lead me?"

"Ha, I thought my team knew me by now. You should know Kururu…I'm the type of leader who only leads from the front!"

** One hour later…**

"Captain Howard, how long do think it will be till I can have frog leg stew?" Kagura asked.

"Not too long Commander. If you'd like I can show you a great Cajun recipe for frog."

"_Sir!_" the radio crackled to life. "_We're under attack and encountering heavy resistance!_"

"How can that be?" said Kagura. "Yesterday there was only four of them!"

"_Oh, and these guys aren't frogs. We're facing an android army, and it's winning!_"


	7. Tomo Earns Her Stripes

Kagura started running towards the airlock. Tomo and Osaka did their best to keep up with her. She seemed to be so far ahead of them. Tomo could barely keep up with Osaka, despite all her energy. Tomo couldn't keep up with either one of these two. Each breath was becoming more and more difficult. Tomo wasn't sure how much longer she could keep this up. She fell on the floor, gasping for air.

"Come on Tomo," said Osaka, "get up, we have to go!"

"Wait…why am I going? I can't fight, I can't run, I can't even catch my breath! If I go with you two I'll just die…."

"What about Yomi?" said Osaka. "Don't you want to back her up?"

"Uh, Osaka, Yomi's on the bridge…I don't think she needs any back up."

"Yes she does Tomo!" Osaka yelled. "If the marines aboard this ship die no one will be left between her and the android menace!"  
Tomo hadn't thought of that before, but what could she do? She wasn't a ground pounder she was from the Navy. Physical fitness wasn't something that had been stressed at Luna Naval Academy.

"Hey!" yelled Kagura, "if you can't keep up meet me in the armory!"  
Osaka pulled Tomo off of the floor. Tomo rested her arm around Osaka's shoulders for support. They quickly (not really) made it to the armory. Kagura waited for them, her impatience quite evident.

"Where have you two been?"

"I think Tomo's better now," Osaka said.

"Ye-yeah," Tomo huffed, "I'm fine…really."

"Look you two," said Kagura, "if you can't perform now, then I think we might all die today."

"Not exactly the best pep talk I've ever heard," Tomo replied.

"Shut up," said Kagura her temper was reaching critical levels. "The plan is for the three of us to get onboard the alien space ship. Once we're onboard we'll kill all of the Keronians, deactivate the androids, and destroy the alien warship. Now do either of you have a better plan?"

"No," Tomo and Osaka said in unison.

"Okay," Kagura reached into her holster pulling out her HK pistol. "Osaka or Tomo?" the girl asked.

"I'll take it," said Tomo, "there's no way I'm facing these things unarmed."

"Fine," said Kagura. As Tomo inspected the firearm Kagura went to a wall rack filled with large rifles. "Ah, there it is," said Kagura. Tomo looked up from her handgun to see a four foot long barrel pointing at her face. The rifle Kagura had selected was an AS 50 sniper rifle. The weapon fired the .50BMG round, and weighed about 28 pounds. It had originally been designed for use by the Navy SEALs almost four hundred years ago. "What do you think Takino?" Kagura asked.

"That thing…is huge!" Tomo yelled.

_Slick_, Tomo turned her head to see Osaka holding a strange rifle in her hands.

"An AA-12?" said Kagura.

"Gotta be CQB."

"I think you might be overdoing it Osaka," Kagura replied.

"I don't take chances," Kasuga responded.

**Near the airlock…**

Smith turned to see androids rushing towards him. He quickly ducked his head back down. Next to him Nyamo blind fired her SCAR, the sound of glass and metal shattering filled their ears. Quickly popping his head back up Smith discovered that the .30 bullets of the SCAR H had done a lot more damage than the 556mm rounds of his TAR 51. The two machines lay destroyed, bullet holes in their fuel tanks and CPUs.

Nyamo's head popped up beside his. "Not bad for a girl, huh?" she boasted.

"Yeah, don't let it go to your head though."

"Whatever," said Nyamo.

Smith just shrugged, watching Nyamo reload before rising up from the floor. Smith followed her to the corner before raising his TAR 51, switching to M302 grenade launcher. Peeking around the corner Smith saw a group of marines hiding behind crates to keep from getting hit by the androids shotgun arms. Smith fired off two grenades in quick succession. The robot he hit instantly fell down. Smith fired off another two grenades, both missed. At this point the three remaining robots turned in his direction. They moved quickly and Smith was out of grenades. Suddenly gunfire filled Smith's left ear. One by one the three machines were ripped apart by a hail of gunfire from Nyamo and her SCAR. Smith inspected the destroyed machines, some still leaking out oil.

"Like I said, not bad for a girl."

"Whatever," Smith replied.

**The airlock…ground zero…**

Captain Howard hid with his men behind steel crates. The sound of automatic shotgun fire filled their ears. These machines were immune to the rounds of their TAR 51 assault rifles. Luckily the men with designated marksmen rifles could defeat the androids' armor. Heavy machineguns and rifle grenades also made short work of the robots. But it wasn't enough. Captain Howard wasn't quite sure how much longer they could hold out against these things. All he knew for certain was that to win this battle, they needed a miracle.

**En route to the airlock…**

_BAM! BAM! BAM!_ Three shots and Kagura's AS 5O destroyed three androids instantly. The power and accuracy of each of her shots was tremendous. Tomo could only stare in wonder at her. Tomo saw some large shapes emerge from the hallway to the left.

_BAM! BAM! BAM!_ Three less androids to worry about.

"Come on!" said Kagura. "We need to get to the ship!"

The three of them hurried towards the airlock. Screams could be heard up ahead. They had to be close.

**Near the airlock…**

"Damn it!"

Their situation looked pretty dire. Nyamo and Smith had headed towards the airlock in order to help the marines. They weren't afraid of anything, at least that's what they thought. Unfortunately they had run into more of the androids, as well as Kururu.

"What's the matter humans? Afraid of little old me?" Kururu's sinister laugh came through his android exoskeleton.

"We're not scared," said Smith, "just respectful."

"We both know that's a lie," said Kururu. "Why don't you come out from behind those boxes so I can kill you properly?"

"F— you!" yelled Nyamo and Smith together. Kurosawa raised her SCAR and sprayed rounds over the tops of the crates. Glass splintered from the impact of the SCAR's powerful bullets. Nyamo and Smith popped their heads out to see what had happened.

"I'm not very impressed," said Kururu. "All you did was destroy those ones that were on autopilot. I think you'll find me a much greater challenge." The shotgun arms of Kururu's exoskeleton retracted, hands appeared to take their place. "I prefer ripping my prey apart, don't you?"

_Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit_. Smith was scared. He had run out of rifle grenades, Nyamo was out of ammo. The only option left was to use their fragmentation grenades. But Kururu was only ten feet away from them. Smith could hear himself whimper, _so much for being an unstoppable sergeant_. Kururu lifted the metal crate the two were hiding behind over his head.

"Any last words? I didn't think so," the evil Keronian laughed at his moment of triumph. "Like shooting monkeys in a barrel."

Smith and Nyamo embraced each other, closing their eyes, knowing that this was the end.

_BAM! BAM! BAM!_

The evil Keronian was crushed under the weight of the heavy steel crate. Smith and Nyamo both opened their eyes up. They couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"Look you two," said Kagura, "you'll have time _after_ the battle."

Nyamo and Smith pulled away from each other. Kagura had a smile on her face, Nyamo and Smith did not. Kagura laughed as Smith and Nyamo seemed to turn red with anger. Kagura looked at them again, a smile still on her face.

"We were not…." Nyamo and Smith stopped. They had both spoken in unison for the second time that day. A slight blush formed on their faces.

"I'm not terribly interested in your relationship," said Kagura, "but it's good to see that Nyamo's finally started dating."

Kurosawa mumbled to herself about how much she hated her friend Kagura. "Just because I haven't told you about dates I've went on…that doesn't mean I haven't gone on any!"

"Might want to work on your lies…and possibly your grammar."

"Look Kagura," said Nyamo, "don't make me bring up Tom…."

"Oh please," said Kagura, "miscarriages and antibiotics. Besides Kasuga and I need to put a stop to this android problem."

"How are you gonna do that?" asked Smith.

"If we disconnect these two ships, most of the androids will be sucked out into space. I've told Kaorin to do that in five minutes, by then I think I'll be onboard the alien's ship." Kagura was determined, and she would not fail.

**The airlock…ground zero…**

"Johnson, keep up the suppressing fire!" yelled one of the marines.

The androids had been outnumbered from the start, something that was becoming even clearer with each passing second. Over two hundred of the machines lay destroyed, but the marines had suffered even more. Of the 478 marines onboard the _Hercules_ less than half of that number was still alive.

Captain Howard looked at what remained of his proud men and women. There just didn't seem to be any hope of surviving. _Oh no_, Howard thought to himself, _he's here again!_ There had been about three hundred robots in the beginning, but two of them had contained strange creatures in them. Howard assumed that these were the aliens the ULE team had encountered. The yellow one was pretty dangerous and Howard hadn't seen it in awhile. The most dangerous one however was the green one. Every time it appeared it killed more than twenty marines on its own. It had shown up five times already, and now here it was again.

"AT4, do it!"

Howard raised his head, just in time to see something streak across the room. The AT4's anti-tank round slammed into the largest group of androids, pieces of metal flew in all directions. Howard watched as two more additional rockets ripped through thirty more of the war machines. Howard saw Kasuga loading another round into the missile system. Kagura aimed at another group of robots and fired.

Keroro watched his robots fall by the dozen from the mighty AT4. Keroro saw a group of marines hiding behind a crate. He quickly rushed over to where they were. His exoskeleton's powerful arms crushed the steel crate like tissue paper. He smashed the marines under his heavy metallic feet.

Kagura watched the evil frog slaughter more marines. She saw how their .223 rounds simply bounced off his armored suit. This couldn't go on any longer.

"Alright you guys!" Kagura yelled to Tomo and Osaka, "There's a change of plans. You two will go aboard, I'll stay here."

"What?" yelled Tomo, "why?"

"I have to kill Keroro, no one else here is skilled enough," Kagura answered. "He just wiped out another squad!" Kagura's anger had reached its limit. "You two get on the damn ship already!"

"Okay," said Osaka. "Come on Tomo, we only have thirty seconds left to get onboard!"

"But…," at this point Osaka grabbed Tomo by the arm and dragged her towards the airlock.

"Come on Tomo! We need to move a lot faster if we're gonna get there in time!"

Tomo ran as fast as she could, so did Osaka. They ran past the charred remains of androids, past the bodies of fallen marines. An android's attempt to stop them was short lived, by the virtue of Kagura's AS 50. Osaka and Tomo leaped onto the Keronian ship.

"We need to hold on to get behind something," said Osaka.

"We should use that doorway over there. It's close by and it's facing away from the airlock!"

Tomo and Osaka just managed to brace against the doorway before the ships pulled away from each other. They could hear the rush of air as it was sucked into the vacuum of space. Warning sirens could be heard over the air streaming past. A heavy thud was felt rather than heard. At that point the air stopped streaming past them and everything was quite.

**Thirty seconds prior…onboard the **_**Hercules**_**…**

Kagura watched the "awesome duo" head towards the airlock. A lone android attempted to stop them. Kagura quickly raised the AS 50 and fired a single round straight through the machine.

"Good luck you two," said Kagura, "you're gonna need it."

Kagura saw Keroro move off. Suddenly the sound of a howling wind filled Kagura's ears. _Finally_, thought Kagura. _The airlock is open_. Kagura watched as the androids were sucked out of the spaceship, along with the corpses of the marines, after only a few seconds the airlock doors slammed shut again; separating the humans from the lethal depths of space.

Keroro saw what had happened to his android army. Keroro moved away quickly in his combat suit, but Kagura still managed to catch up with him.

"Aw," said Keroro, "if it isn't Mia Hamm. What brings you here space mo—?"

Keroro was rudely interrupted by a round from Kagura's AS 50 sniper rifle. The android body erupted into a fireball that Keroro leapt out of.

"How rude," said Keroro, "and here I was trying to create small talk."

Kagura wasn't in to talking at the moment since she fired another shot.

"Hey!" yelled Keroro, "if you aren't careful with that thing you're liable to actually hit me!"

_God damn it!_ _How the hell does he manage to dodge my shots?_

Kagura continued to fire at Keroro. Each time she pulled the trigger the frog would leap away, unfazed.

After firing again Kagura noticed something. _Now I see how he dodges my shots, his eyes are fast enough that they can see my finger squeezing the trigger! If I can get him to close his eyes, then I've got him! But how can I get him to do that?_

"Heh, I thought you were an elite soldier. I guess I was wrong…."

"Shut up! You stupid toad monkey!"

"I am not a stupid toad monkey!" yelled Keroro, "I eat them!"

For a split second Keroro closed his eyes in anger. Kagura took her chance. The .50BMG round is well noted for its anti-personnel capabilities. Even at a distance of a kilometer it can still penetrate body armor with ease. Victims of the .50BMG round are often nearly decapitated by its sheer kinetic energy. It had a similar effect on the unarmored Keroro, except that this happened to his whole body. The .50BMG round penetrated the frog monster, being held up by fluid filled bladders Keroro had no solid bodily components. The effect was fairly similar to that of a water balloon, at least if water balloons were filled with a green mucus like substance.

"_This is Captain Howard of the USMC_," Kagura's radio crackled to life. "_The hostiles have been neutralized. I repeat the hostiles have been neutralized_."

Kagura smiled to herself. It had been just another day at the office.

**Aboard the Keronian spaceship…**

Kasuga peered around the corner. The hallway was empty. Sighing in relief Osaka waved Tomo over. Takino appeared shortly, both of her hands pointing the HK down the hall.

"How far is the bridge?" asked Tomo.

"I don't know, wait. Do you hear that?"

Osaka and Tomo both listened carefully. Footprints echoed faintly from in front of them. That meant it wasn't an android, it was a frog. Osaka aimed her AA-12 in the direction of the sound. Tomo quickly followed suit. The sound grew louder and louder. Osaka switched her shotgun from safe to fully automatic. Tomo moved her index finger off of the trigger guard.

A red shape sped down the hall. Tomo and Osaka fired off a few shots. The red blur slammed into Takino, knocking her to the floor, her pistol slid behind her.

Osaka slammed the stock of her AA-12 into the assailant. Giroro was thrown back a few feet from the force of the impact. The Keronian Corporal quickly touched the emblem on his head. He instantly disappeared, he had become invisible.

At the moment that Giroro had been knocked off of her, Tomo had reached for her pistol. She stretched her arm out to grab the small weapon. Her hand touched the polymer grip. Quickly her fingers got a hold on it, putting it in both her hands Takino spun around. Just in time to see Osaka bleeding on the floor.

Tomo heard a noise to her left. She didn't hesitate. Three .45ACP rounds tore across the five foot space. Red liquid flowed from the air as if by magic. Tomo squeezed the five remaining shots out of her firearm. Giroro fell to floor, his heart pierced by one of Tomo's first pistol shots.

"You're a natural," said Osaka.

"You really think so?" asked Tomo.

"I sure do," Osaka wiped the blood off of her face. "That one nearly had us. Luckily there's only one left onboard this ship, and it's the little one."

The awesome duo quickly headed down the hall in the direction of the arrows that said _Bridge_ on them. The two quickly arrived. Tamama stood with his back turned towards them, he didn't get the chance to turn around.

"Okay," said Osaka, "now all we have to do is destabilize the engines. That'll destroy the ship."

"Oh I don't think you'll have the chance to do that," said Keroro.

"How did you get off of the _Hercules_?" Tomo and Osaka asked.

"You honestly thought that was me? And here I thought that you creatures were smart. That was only a clone. I never left this ship." Keroro quickly shot an energy bolt at Kasuga. Her AA-12 took the brunt of the damage. Keroro then slammed into her, they started wrestling. Osaka's back was against one of the ship's control panels. It was clear that Keroro was the stronger of the two.

"Tomo!" yelled Osaka, "fire your pistol at us!"

"But that would kill you—"

"Just do it!" Osaka screamed.

Tomo stared at the two of them fighting each other. Memories of her time with Osaka flowed through her head. She set the pistol down, tears in her eyes.

"What the hell are you doing?" Osaka yelled.

"I can't do it."

"Yes you can! Do it now!"

"NO!" yelled Tomo. "I can't."

"Why not?" Osaka screamed.

"Because you're my friend Osaka. I can't let you go alone." Tomo walked over towards one of the control panels.

"You have to Tomo," said Osaka, "it's the only way!"

"No, no it isn't." Tomo placed her left hand over one of the buttons. "Do you remember what Kagura said, when she came back after she had walked across this ship?"

"No," said Osaka still struggling against Keroro's might. "No I don't."

"She said that if the aliens tried firing their weapons, they would become a lovely ball of plasma."

"What?" yelled Keroro.

"You heard me."

"Argh!" Keroro hit Osaka in the face before leaping towards Tomo. He flew fast. But not fast enough. Tomo managed to hit the button, just as Keroro snapped her neck.

Kagura watched from the bridge as the ship began to evaporate. Hot gas sprayed out in all directions. The center of the swirling vortex was too bright to see. She closed her eyes, tears escaped from them. For the first time in eight years, ever since Tom had broken up with her, Kagura cried.

Kagura followed the chief engineer. She claimed to have found the individual that had disabled their engines. Yomi and Nyamo followed her, tears flowing from their eyes. Kagura was going to kill this bastard.

"Here he is Commander."

"Thank you Miss Mihama," said Kagura, "I won't be long."

Kagura walked into the room, finally able to meet the man who had kept disabled their ship and nearly killed them all. The man's face was nervous. He stroked his hair incessantly. His eyes however were cold, uncaring, cruel. The man in front of Kagura was Captain Franklin P. Howard.

"Why?" asked Kagura.

"Orders."

"Orders from who?"

"OMNI Central Command," Howard responded.

"Figures," said Kagura.

"We knew about the Keronians for quite some time," said Howard. "Unfortunately we'd previously been unable to get a glimpse of them. When we heard that a Keronian ship was to be sent near these coordinates I asked for a Navy vessel to be in the vicinity."

"So, that means you're the reason so many of us died," Kagura responded.

"Like I said I was merely following ord—"

"Yeah, orders that you made yourself!" yelled Kagura. "I am absolutely done with this interrogation." Kagura pulled a SIG 226 out of her hip holster.

"What are you doing?" yelled Howard.

"You were present during our battle against the exoskeletons right? As far as Command will know your death was caused by injuries sustained during the battle."

"You'll never get away with it!"

"Get away with it?" said Kagura, "How am I the bad guy here? _You_ were the one that murdered over four hundred of the soldiers under your command. This is simply justice, plain and simple."

"Yeah well you can go straight to He—"

Captain Howard never finished his sentence. Kagura's weapons had a nasty habit of interrupting people.


	8. Visiting The Wall Kagura Grieves

The sky was light grey. The field was well manicured, the grass wet from the rain. The skies above continued to rain, Smith stared at the black slab in front of him. He looked at the list of names, so many friends, all of them gone forever. His dark brown hair seemed almost black from the raindrops that had fallen onto it. His tan coat was becoming darker as it absorbed more and more water. He was trying not to cry. But he wasn't sure he could keep the tears back much longer.

Beside him Nyamo stared at the wall too. The wall had an unusual quality to it. It was almost like looking at a yearbook, except you didn't want to know any of the names. Nyamo still had trouble with her memories of the _Hercules_. That was why she had left the Navy. The _Hercules_ was why Smith had left too.

Smith reached out gently grabbing her left hand. She gave his a slight squeeze. At this point neither of them could hold back their tears. Smith turned his face towards Nyamo's.

"Hey," he said, "you cryin'?"  
"N-no I not," Nyamo lied with a slight sob, "The rain is just dripping down my face. That's all."

"Like I told you before, you need to work on your lies…and your grammar."

Smith and Nyamo turned to see Kagura standing next to them. She was dressed in a black uniform with a white hat on, four gold stripes and a star covered both her shoulders. Kagura had been promoted to Captain USN.

Kagura looked at the two of them standing together. Their hands still clasped together. The American and the Japanese made a strange couple. Kagura didn't really care. She noticed a glint of light on Nyamo's right hand.

"Is that a ring Nyamo?" Kagura asked.

"Yep," she replied, "Smith proposed to me two days ago."

Kagura thought about how her own life. So many things, so many of them things she wanted to forget. It sometimes seemed like God hated her for something. She looked at Nyamo again. Back in high school Nyamo had always been the youngest of her group of friends. That was even more apparent now.

Kagura felt old, her lifetime of being a commando coming back to haunt her. Most of the friends she had made were dead now. She'd never had too many of them to begin with, now she only had one. _Better make that two_, Kagura thought.

"What brings you here Captain?" Smith asked.

"That doesn't matter," Kagura said, "What matters is when I need to attend the wedding."

"Um," said Smith, "Minamo and I haven't quite decided that…."

"You've got time," replied Kagura. "But there's something else, the real reason I'm here is because I'm going to watch the executions of the OMNI members involved in our time aboard the _Hercules_. Thought I'd stop by, just to make sure my daughter doesn't have her father buried next to her." That wasn't the only reason Kagura was here though. She turned towards the wall. Looking at all the names she finally found it, _Ayumu Kasuga_, Kagura's oldest friend. Staring at the wall Kagura removed her white Captain's hat. Letting out a soft sigh she put it back on.

"It's hard to look at isn't it?" Smith asked Kagura.

"It's not as hard as it was to make sure this never happens again. It's been over six months now and I've only managed to press criminal charges on OMNI members two weeks ago. If I've done my job well enough that 'intelligence agency' won't be able to survive the politics of the situation."

"Wait a minute…. You took down OMNI?" Smith asked. "How did you manage to do that?"

"That's one of the first things they teach you in SEAL training, speed and stamina. Those six months earned me another gold stripe. I just hope that they're really gone for good."

"Me too," said Smith. Smith looked at the woman; it was clear to him that size wasn't everything. "Say, what did you mean when you said you didn't want your daughter to have her father buried next to her?"

"Captain Franklin P. Howard wasn't really a captain, he was a colonel. In order to get approval from OMNI Central Command he needed the support of another high ranking officer. Only one was willing to help. That man's name is Colonel Thomas V. Keith. I dated him for awhile. After five years he left me pregnant and with what was once thought to be an incurable strain of syphilis. I'd always thought that he'd died from the disease, but before being assigned to the _Hercules_ I learned he was still alive. His execution is scheduled for two o'clock."

"How did your daughter die?" Smith asked.

"Miscarriage," Kagura answered. "I don't want her tarnished by her father's stinking corpse." Kagura moved over to a small cross. Reaching inside her coat she pulled out a white rose which she propped up against the grave marker.

"We'd better get out of this rain," said Nyamo, "before we join them." Minamo pointed her hand towards the wall with the list of those who had died onboard the _Hercules_ from its last voyage.

"You two go ahead," said Kagura. She watched the two of them head towards their car. Smith got into the driver's seat, he looked at Kagura. Nyamo waved to her as the two of them drove away. Kagura reached into her coat pulling out a HK 45SV. Turning it over in her hands Kagura looked at the small cross signifying where her daughter was on Earth. _I don't really know what I want_, Kagura thought to herself. As she turned the pistol over she thought about her friends. She could see herself standing next to Osaka, Yukari, and Nyamo. She saw herself standing next to her friends from the SEALs. Jeffery, Maddie, Ron, Lincoln. Then she saw how Jeffery had fallen off of the bridge in Ghana. She saw how Maddie had been sent to her death by the careless actions of a garbage barge. She saw Ron run over by a friendly APC. The image of Lincoln being struck by a sniper round filled her head. Finally she saw Alvarez's bloody corpse lying on the floor next to the android that had killed him.

Kagura stopped playing with the weapon. She placed her favorite handgun back into her coat. Looking up from the grave marker Kagura headed towards her Toyota. She couldn't die. At least not before Tom.


End file.
